SUU KYI SUPPORT FOR KAREN DOCTOR, B

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Subject: SUU KYI SUPPORT FOR KAREN DOCTOR, BURMESE STUDENT ACTIVIST &  MALAYSIAN NGO ON HUMAN RIGHTS DAY

AUNG SAN SUU KYI SUPPORT FOR KAREN DOCTOR, BURMESE STUDENT ACTIVIST AND
MALAYSIAN NGO ON WORLD HUMAN RIGHTS DAY

Bangkok, Fri: A Karen doctor caring for refugees and migrant workers in
Thailand, a Burmese student activist held in solitary confinement for his
beliefs and a Malaysian human rights NGO earned praises from Burmese
opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi in statements to be released today,
World Human Rights Day.

The support was voiced by Ms Suu Kyi in smuggled video messages to be
played at separate events in Kuala Lumpur and Montreal.

"WE NEED MORE PEOPLE LIKE DR. CYNTHIA MAUNG"

In the video message to be played at the presentation of the John Humphrey
Freedom Award in Montreal at 5 p.m. (Montreal time), Ms Suu Kyi said:
"Everybody knows of what Dr. Cynthia Maung has done on the border for
Burmese refugees, for political refugees and economic migrants, as well as
for people from Burma who are finding it very difficult to get medical care
on our side of the border. 

"It is a sad reflection on the state of things in Burma that many people
from our side of the border feel impelled to cross the border to go to Dr.
Cynthia Maung for treatment. But it is also proof of her great compassion
and the importance of what she is doing. We need more people like Dr.
Cynthia Maung".

This year's John Humphrey Freedom Award is being jointly awarded to Dr
Cynthia Maung, a Karen doctor based in Thailand, and student activist Min
Ko Naing who has been held in solitary confinement in Burma for over a
decade. The presentation ceremony has been organised by the International
Centre for Human Rights and Democratic Development (ICHRDD) and the World
Civil Society Conference (WOCSOC) at the Sheraton Centre in Montreal, Canada.

"MIN KO NAING REPRESENTS MANY OTHERS WHO ARE SUFFERING"

Ms Suu Kyi described Min Ko Naing as "one of the student leaders who
started the 1988 movement for democracy, and he has stood firm against all
pressure from the authorities.

"He has been kept in solitary confinement for all these 10 years. At the
moment, he is no longer in a prison in Rangoon but has been transferred to
one in the Arakan division. This means that his family faces enormous
difficulties in going to visit him. Political prisoners in Burma are
allowed one visit a fortnight. Fifteen minutes a fortnight. But if you are
in a prison in the Arakan division and your family is in Rangoon, you are
lucky if you get a visit once in 6 months.

"Min Ko Naing represents many others who are suffering from the injustices
of the present military regime. That the prize has been awarded to him
gives us all great hope, great pride, and great pleasure, because it shows
that the world has not forgotten our cause, and that the world is not
ignoring our people who have been ignored by the military regime for so
long. Even if the military authorities do not recognize our people as human
beings who need help, who need compassion, and who have the right to
justice, we know now that the world recognizes it."

"HUMAN RIGHTS ARE RELEVANT TO ALL HUMAN BEINGS"

In a video message to the 10th anniversary dinner of Malaysian human rights
NGO Suaram in Kuala Lumpur, Ms Suu Kyi emphasised that human rights,
including political, civil, social and economic rights "are not a
particularly western idea".

"Human rights are relevant to all human beings. Those who wish to deny us
certain political rights try to convince us that these are not Asian
values. They try to make us content with what they are prepared to give us. 

"The whole concept of political and civil rights is based on the conviction
that not only do human beings have rights and responsibilities, but that
they have the ability to win these rights for themselves. And they have the
qualities that make them deserve these rights. For this reason, for us to
be fully developed human beings who have realized our potential, we need
our political and civil rights.

"We have heard of brave organizations all over the world which fight for
political and civil rights in the face of tremendous difficulties. Quite
often, these difficulties come from the direction of the authorities. We
know that Suaram, like the National League for Democracy in Burma, has had
to face many problems in their battle to promote political and civil
rights. Freedom of speech, freedom of association, the right to due process
of justice, all these cannot be taken for granted in our part of the world."

Ms Suu Kyi also focused on the need for closer cooperation to promote human
rights: "I hope the time will come when organizations working for human
rights all over South East Asia will be able to cooperate more closely. It
is only by our united efforts that we can change those attitudes which are
detracting from the genuine development of our nations."

ENDS


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